Another Day in the Making
by Ullessey Talcius
Summary: Katherine Takano's life always included mixed feelings and new places. But her hobbies and missions have kept her busy, letting her forget her misery in the past. Follow her through her journeys as she grows up with her friends Dexter, Ben & many others.
1. Boy Genius, Girl Tactics, New Friendship

Another Day in the Making

Chapter 1: Boy Genius + Girl Tactics =New Friendship

**Disclaimer: I don't own Fusionfall, but I do own the scenario and Katherine Takano, my OC in the story.**

**DexXKathy may be involved. This is my first fanfic for Fusionfall so no flames please!**

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The Pentagon, the world's largest office building, and I just happened to be doing an errand for them. Actually, I'm doing this for Max, but the people at the Pentagon think I'm all theirs(Exaggerating, of couse). This was my first job as a Plumber: Go to the Pentagon and deliver an important letter to a certain address that just happened to be where I live. What do I look like, a messenger girl or something? But I _did _owe Max a favor, and would you look at that, I have to deliver a package too! It wasn't a small one either. Luckily, it was going to the same place. At least I didn't have to go to two completely different places.

I take the letter and the package with me onto a SCAMPER and ride it to the address. Twelve minutes later, I land safely onto the asphalt in front of a—wait a minute, was I supposed to land here? I think I just landed in front of someone's house. I double check the slip of paper Max had put the address on for me. I stare at the area code on the mailbox, which was standing next to the concrete steps that led to the front door. I look at the address again. Number by number, it seemed to be the right place. I haul the package out of the SCAMPER carefully, trying to watch my step. I trudge up to the door and slowly put the package down onto the doorstep. I look around, noticing that there really wasn't anybody home. No cars either. I knocked anyways. I mean to be honest; some people don't use vehicles, what with global warming and such. Surprisingly, I heard small footsteps coming towards the other side of the door. I heard a loud click of the lock and the door opened.

"Hello?" Said a heavily accented voice. Sounded like Russian, but then again, it could be something else. A short redheaded boy had come to the door. He looked like he might've been 10 or 11 years old. He was wearing a cotton white lab coat with black pants as well as for his buckled shoes shining as if they were polished. But what caught my attention the most was that he was wearing purple rubber gloves, and his eyes, his eyes seem the most attractive part of him. They were a startling blue, vibrant and intelligent, hidden behind a pair of black goggle-like glasses.

"Hello. Does anyone in your household go by the name of…" I look at the letter's recipient name. "Dexter?"

The boy smiled with satisfaction, and introduced. "That would be me. Dexter, boy genius."

I stared at him, wondering if it was possible that this boy was trying to trick me. "Nice try kid, your not fooling anyone. Now seriously, I just need to deliver this to Dexter and I'll be on my way."

"Want me to prove it? If I can prove to you that I'm Dexter, then you can just leave without breaking down."

I raised my brow an inch. "What do you mean, break down?"

"Nevermind, come in." He invited, opening the door to full width. "Bring in the package too."

I shrugged and lifted the package, walking it into the room. After setting the box down, the boy shuts the door behind me, making me follow him to the living room.

He walks to the backyard outside, I follow. He walks over to a small pass code pad which was imbedded into the ground. He presses a few of the numbers and slowly, a large door in the ground opened beneath, shaking the ground around it only slightly. He gestured me to come with him underground. All I could do was gawk in pure awe at the amazing workmanship of just the hidden entrance. For all I knew, there could be an entire laboratory down here! And boy was there ever! There were giant Megabots, complicated scanners, huge computer screens, piles of CPUs, and of course, tons and tons androids and robots! It's a Sci-fi fanatic's dream!

"D-did _you _make all these things?" I stammered in question.

"I told you that I had proof." He stated proudly.

He let me look around as much as I wanted, but made me promise not to touch anything. Everything metallic in the laboratory was cool to the touch, very high tech obviously. Everything in the lab was so cutting edge, you probably couldn't tell if you were in the present anymore. I even almost forgot I had something to deliver to boy genius.

"Oh my, I almost forgot," I muttered as I took out the large manila envelope that the Pentagon had given me. I gave the envelope to its proper owner.

"I apologize for my doubts about you, Dexter. I am truly amazed by your work." I admitted sincerely, looking around at the boy's lab.

"How long have you been doing this?" I asked.

"Much longer than you'd expect, really. Oh, and don't worry about the box. I already sent one of my androids to pick it up." He explained, as he saw me head for the exit.

_Man, he's good. I'm guessing I should've expected that. _I thought, stopping myself. I watched him as he opened the envelope, pulling out a small packet of files, setting them down on a nearby marble table. Then I realized something.

"Hey Dexter, do you by any chance have any sponsors or funding helping you do all of this?"

Surprised by my question, he glanced at me, then the papers. He looked at me again and replied. "Well, actually I don't. Why do you ask, um, what is your name? I don't believe you ever told me."

"Oh sorry, how rude of me. It's just that I didn't expect Dexter to be you." I pull my hand out of my pocket and gesture to him. "My name is Katherine Takano. Age 11, freelance KND agent, I'm also one of the youngest people to ever join the Plumbers and, well that's all."

Slightly hesitant, he shakes hands with me. In that moment we shaked, I felt this strange feeling. Like as if our meeting was about to change our entire lives, as well as history. But then again, that's just me.

"Impressive, must be a very busy life for you. Anyway though," He went on, letting go of my hand. "Katherine, my question still stands."

"Well, what with all I've seen within this wondrous place of yours, it would be even greater with some kind of sponsor backing you up. I'm surprised to hear you don't though." Then a something even greater came to mind. "I know! I can be your sponsor!"

His eyes widened at my offer. "I don't know Katherine… do you even have the money to support that?"

"Of course I do, tons of it. Don't ask how I do it, because I _really _don't know where it comes from. It just keeps coming, and the numbers just rise." I admitted. "If you like, I can show you." I offer.

He gestures towards one of his smaller computers, which was composed of a hologram and touch screen combination. I touch over a few keys, only taking seconds to load and display. I typed in the bank's website, bringing up my account. I step away from the screen, letting him view the big numbers that were being shown as my savings. The young genius side glanced at me in irony, wanting to know how I could have possibly accumulated so much.

"Now _that_ is a really huge number." Dexter admitted.

"What do you say, do we have a deal?" I offer him, wondering what he would say to this.

He looks at me, wondering what I could possibly be thinking about. He finally smiles, his face brimming with excitement.

"Deal."

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**So, what do you guys think? I've been wanting to write this for so long I just had to. Please review my story! Anonymous reviews are allowed, so no worries. Thanks, Hikaru.**


	2. School Friends, New and Old

Another Day in the Making

Chapter 2- School friends, New and Old

**Disclaimer: I don't own Fusionfall, but if I did, I would have removed the 'Unlimited Access' junk a long time ago. But that doesn't mean I don't know anything about the game! I've done my research!**

**DexXKathy may be involved. In this chapter, another of my brave OCs will be joining them in story. Oh, I almost forgot, I didn't say this in the first chapter, but this story starts a few of years before the invasion, which explains the whole age thing where Dexter and Katherine are 11 years old. Enjoy! **

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"Beep! Beep Beep!" The alarm clock went off. "Beep! Beep Be—"

I turned off the alarm with a click of the snooze button. I groaned as I slowly got out of the large bed with a heavy quilt, which was lying over my body as well as my bed. I feel my way to the dresser drawer, my tired eyes still shut from my well needed sleep. I pull out a set of clothes, dragging myself to the bathroom. After dressing into my silky bright orange top and oversized, creamy yellow jacket, I pulled on a pair of my khakis and slipped on a pair of my favorite black hiker boots. I pull my long ivory hair into a pony tail on the back of my head, as always, leaving a few small bangs to cover the front. Rubbing off the sleep from my eyes, I walk downstairs to the kitchen, noticing that Con and Moeka (pronounced as mocha, like the coffee. Ooh, mocha. I loves me some mocha. XP) had been standing next to the table, which had a large dish of breakfast was waiting for someone to eat it.

"Good morning Kathy. I see you didn't forget to set the alarm clock for this morning." Moeka remarked teasingly.

Moeka was one of my, 'assistants', as some would say. She wore a casual outfit: A white T-shirt which had large imprints of red, complexly designed butterflies with a set of blue jeans and dark red sneakers, with the exception of a small blue apron. Her short hair was a vivid red, which glowed against her darkly colored skin.

"……You could say that…" I welcomed, reaching over to the chair at the breakfast table. "Con, the applications are made up for, correct?" I asked the tall man softly.

Con, as I usually called the quiet man, was the chef and tutor in my house, as well as my right hand man. Since I always let them wear whatever they wanted, Moeka would always wear a casual look. On the other hand, Con chose to stay with a dark brown, semiformal business suit with black shoes. When he cooked, he would use a chef's uniform, his dirty blonde hair curled from underneath his chef's hat.

"You mean your sponsor's applications?" He asked me in his usual emotionless tone. His tone of voice made it hard to read his feelings.

"Yes." I mumbled through my chewing of food. "I will continue with my high school band classes, so I won't be back until about 5:45 in the afternoon." I explained, swallowing down the last bite of my breakfast.

I stand up, carefully putting away the dishes into the dishwasher. Moeka hands me my Hov-scooter and my shoulder bag as I exit the house. I strap the bag on, as well as my helmet. I make a running start and jump. I press the button I installed into the handle bar. I launch the Hov-scooter and jump on. The small scooter starts up the anti-gravity field as planned, gracefully floating in midair. I slide open the top of the control pad and activate the rocket booster. Starting up the rockets wasn't easy, but they worked really well, if anything. I made the whole scooter myself, after all.

"I'll see you guys after school, okay?" I hollered back to them as I steadied myself upon my Hov-scooter. I waved goodbye to the two adults and headed for school.

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_Darn it. I missed the bus……again. _I thought ironically._ How does Dee Dee get on the bus so fast?_

I started walking over school, thinking over the deal I had made with that girl. What was her name again? I think she said her name was Katherine. It's interesting how she spends her time. I mean really, the Plumbers I can understand, but the KND? Wonder what that stands for. She said that did them both, too. She must have a lot of time on her hands to do all that.

Speaking of time, I think I might want to speed up. I'll be late for school. I start jogging for a bit, only to eventually give in to walking again. Whatever happened to waiting for all of the passengers to get on the bus _before _you start driving? Just as I thought upon this, I heard a sound from behind me.

It sounded like a rocket. I turn around and realized that someone was riding a—what is that, a scooter? I suddenly realized that it was also in the air. Was it using some kind of anti-gravity device?

Oh crap, its coming straight at me! I duck in a panic, covering my head. I heard something crash-land a few seconds later. I stand back up, looking around for what might have fallen. I saw two figures that seemed like they were thrown to the ground. One was a beat up scooter, which had two small rockets on the back and a small blue button built into one of the handles. The other was a limp form of a girl. I run over to the girl, wondering if she was still conscious.

"Hey, are you okay? That was a……hard……fall…" I trailed off. I looked hard at the girl, realizing that it was her.

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_Dang it, I forgot the spare battery, didn't I? I hate it when I do that. Man, my head hurts. _I commented inside my head.

"Katherine, is that you?" I heard a voice call out to me.

I groan softly, trying to support myself with my arm. But as soon as moved it, a sudden burn of pain spread throughout my arm from my shoulder. But I sucked it up. I lift my head to see a slightly concerned redhead.

"Dexter," I whisper gently. "I thought I knew that accent from somewhere…"

"Huh? What accent?" He questioned, then shook his head "But, nevermind that, are you hurt?" He asked again, this time with worry.

"I'm fine." I spat plainly. I lift myself onto one knee and stand back up. Then another stinging sensation hit my ankle. I immediately sit back down on the grass which then brings back the pain in both my shoulder and my ankle. I groan again, this time louder.

"Apparently you aren't." He spat back, crossing his arms.

"Well aren't you the smart one." I remarked.

For a good amount of time, all we did was stare at one another. Then I finally got sick of the silence.

"Don't you have school to go to?" I said with an annoyed tone in my voice.

He glances at me and replies. "Yes, but it wouldn't be in the right mind to just leave you here, especially since you broke your ankle, I assume."

"I'm perfectly fine, mind you," I snapped. "and I am also perfectly capable of taking care of myself, thank you very much." I rant as I limping towards the Hov-scooter.

"Here, let me get that for you." He offers as he picks up the beat up scooter and walked it back to me. I take it gently in my hands, its weight making my arms drop it softly to the ground.

"Thanks." I said plainly, trying not to let any emotion leave my lips.

I settle back down in the grass and start tinkering with the control panel. I slide open the battery capsule and take the large battery gingerly into my hands, out of its slot. It was burnt right through the middle, the positive and negative endings of it melted down to nothing.

"Cripes," I mutter in annoyance. "I can believe this."

I examine the battery slot I had just taken it out of. The conductors had been scrunched and then melted to the remaining parts of the control systems. There was no way this was getting repaired, even if I used the latest of equipment, which I couldn't possibly afford.

"What wrong with it?" The young genius asked me with a slight interest in his voice.

"Oh, just an overcharge," I state without trying to let out a yell of anger upon the boy. "Which made the whole thing melt through the battery, which left a mess, which is something I can't possibly repair."

I smack my forehead with my hand which left a small throb of pain. "I _really _should have remembered to bring the spare battery. But then again, remembering things isn't my forte."

"Can I see it?" He asked me quietly. I hand him the Hov-scooter. After a few minutes of examining and turning the scooter over, he handed it back to me.

"I bet I could reconstruct it for you. It would only take a couple of days."

"Say what?" I muttered in befuddlement, then immediately shaking it off. "Are you serious? Do you really think you can do that in just a couple of _days_?"

"Why not?" He answered me with a grin. "It's the least I can do for my new sponsor."

I lower my head a little, blushing slightly. Then a thought came across me. _What time is it?_ I hadn't realized how long we had bickered, until now that is. I pull up the sleeve of my jacket to check my wristwatch. 9:26 A.M. Classes were supposed to start at 9:40.

"Well," I began. "I'll meet you at your house 6, 7 o'clock or so, to repair the scooter of course. That okay with you?" I ask him. He nods. I stand back up on my good leg and pulled the scooter up as well. I step onto the scooter and examined the non-electric rocket boosters. They still had fuel in them so it should be okay.

I wave goodbye to Dexter as I start the rockets up again and head for school.

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It was around lunch time in the cafeteria for the 6th graders as I looked for Toni. He said he was going to meet about now, or did he say _after_ lunch?

Toni was a good guy, at most times. It wasn't that he had temper problems; it was just that he didn't like to be irritated unnecessarily. But he is a great friend in all. We had met a few years back, about the time I had moved to Genius Grove. Back when Mother and Father were still here……but, as I always told my self, I have friends. Like Toni, and if time gives me chance, maybe even Dexter. That's when a startling voice called from behind me.

"Hi Kathy! Nice to see you around here! I've been looking all over for you."

I shrieked in irony, scared out of my wits. "Honestly Toni!" I gasped. "Are you trying to scare me to death?"

A tall, pale skinned boy dashed to my side, panting away. He was wearing a worn out evergreen vest which hung down past his waist, matching the green hiker's shoes he wore. He also had a pitch black shirt and a set of black elbow pads and knee pads with baggy jean shorts, withered to a faded blue. His white hair containing a tinge of almond brown, swept to one side. He had dark chocolate brown eyes which glittered in the sunlight.

He snickered. "Sorry 'bout that. Hey, it's not like I meant to do that on _purpose_."

My eyes narrow. "Sure you didn't. So, what is it that you wanted to see me about?" I asked Toni.

"Why, do I need a reason to just meet up with you?" He pouted lightheartedly.

I smirk jokingly to him. "I guess not. But you said you had something for me, nonetheless."

"Oh, that's right." He murmured, pulling out a small green envelope out of his vest pocket.

He hands it to me. It was from Max. He always used the green ones, especially for personal mailing intentions. I'm assuming this was one of those letters. I opened the envelope which transformed into a letter. It read:

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Kathy,

I heard about your funding proposition between you and that boy genius. I'm sure that you're doing the right thing. From what I've heard from the Pentagon, he's been needing a whole lot of funding recently. He has this application for some kind of assistance, and it just happens to be in your line of talent. I thought you might want to check it out. But other than that, are you busy Saturday? If not, meet me at Twin Lakes Park at noon. I want you to meet some relatives of mine.

See you soon,

Max

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I grin with interest as I fold the piece of paper in half and stuff it into my pocket. Now seeing that I was done with the letter, Toni brings up a new subject.

"So, how are the instrumental classes?" He asks.

"Surprisingly complex, and not very easy, but I like it that way. I mean, the flute isn't that hard but not that easy either." I explained, sitting down at the nearest table. "How are your piano les—I mean, your _keyboard _lessons?" I ask him snidely.

Toni always preferred to use a keyboard since he can bring the thing almost everywhere, whilst a piano or an organ is supposed to remain stationary since it isn't all that mobile. In fact, he liked using the keyboard so much he rather call his piano lessons _keyboard lessons_ even though there really wasn't much difference between the two.

"Just something to past the time, really." He sighed, seating himself across the table. "Oh, I almost forgot to tell you. The other pianists and Yours Truly are hosting a concert next Friday in Townsville. If you could come, that would be great."

I look past him with a tense feeling in the bottom of my stomach. _What was _he_ doing here?_ "That's nice. I'll make sure I come then." I know what some people would think of me if they saw that from me. They probably say something like. "Shouldn't you be congratulating him?" or "You should be treating him to something nice, like ice cream or a movie!"

But trust me, I had a damned good reason for acting like I was in a trance or something stupid like that. Behind Toni was a short, red-head in a white lab-coat stride past into one heck of a problem.

_----------------------------------------------_

_Let's see, I need to go to my high school classes next so I must get to the buses on time this time._ I thought through as I moved in strides around the lunch tables when I bump into someone.

Mumbling an apology, I make a move to walk past them but they blocked the way. Somehow, I wasn't sure if I was going to regret looking at them. Now I do. It was one of the school bullies. He grabbed me by the scruff of my coat, lifting me up with ease and carelessness. He hefted me at eye level, glaring at me, irritated.

"Want something, Cam?" I groaned, annoyed at this waste of time.

Then another person intervened. I only assumed this, what with the tray being thrown at the back of Cam's head, which then bent the tray into a distorted shape.

"Mess with someone that's actually as dumb as you are! Oh wait! There isn't, because there's only one person _that_ stupid: You!" Said an annoyed, familiar voice.

Cam swiveled around to see who could have dared confront him.

It was Katherine Takano. She seemed confused, but looked more aggravated than anything else. Her hazel eyes blazed with fury, although I didn't know what at. I couldn't figure out what she could've possibly been so mad at but I wanted to be the last person to ask her.

"Katherine! What are you doing here?" I managed to ask the girl.

"I was gonna ask you the same thing when the ape picked you up." She replied casually, pointing at Cam as if he were some disgustingly, horrid thing.

"Who are you calling an ape, shorty?" Objected Cam, who was the last person _anyone_ would've expected to understand who she was talking about. That was ironic. Then I noticed that she really was short. But was even more ironic is that she didn't seem intimidated. Not to say she wasn't annoyed.

"So what if I am short?" She spat typically, then tutted the bully. "Size and height are always you bullies' last resort, isn't it?" She sighed, shaking her head scornfully.

"Toni, how about you give this guy a lesson? I'll do your missions for 3 days." She suggested.

Another boy walked from behind her, grinning as he cracked his knuckles. "On it, Kathy."

"But please give me a moment to get one he's holding, will you?" She said, putting a hand in front of the other boy.

Confused and distracted, Cam stood still, staring at the other boy with a threatening glare. Katherine took this moment to her advantage and made two swift movements. She went so fast that I didn't notice what had happened. It took me a few seconds to realize I wasn't in the air anymore and the fact that Cam was squealing in pain. Then in a flash of green and white, the shrill noise was cut off and replaced by a light snoring. Katherine gave the boy a high five walked over to me.

"You know, you should really watch where you're going Dexter," She told me, patting my back. "Otherwise this might happen every time you bump into somebody." She remarked.

"I'll keep that in mind." I responded with sarcasm. "Is your ankle okay? From what happened this morning, I mean."

"Oh that?" She glanced down at her ankle then went back to look at me. "I can hardly feel it now." She replied, grinning happily."

_Unusual girl, this one. _I thought incredulously inside my head._ Unless she's just saying that, it just isn't physically possible..._ "Another thing: You still haven't answered my first question."

"And what would that be?" Asked Katherine, who had seemed to have forgotten the matter.

"What are you doing here?" I repeated.

"I live near here, like you do. So it's perfectly sensible and simple to hypothesize for someone of your caliber. I'm surprised you didn't think of that." She explained, slapping my forehead gently with her palm. "But what I want to know is why _you're_ here. I'd expect to see you in a high school, or a university; honestly, I was surprised to see you, of all people, here in an elementary

school."

"Well I am taking high school classes during the day as well as my elementary classes. They're still so very easy though." I clarified for her.

"Well at least you're taking some. Even if you are still what, eleven? Am I right?" She asks. I nodded. She went on again. "Even though you're only that old, you got the brains of 10 scientists, most likely more too." She ranted. (AN: I suppose that was a compliment of some kind… Kathy can be overactive on situations of this type most often though.)

"Uh, thank you." I said appreciatively. I think. Not sure what that last part was supposed to mean, but I'll take it as a compliment.

"Oh, Dexter, let me introduce you to a good friend of mine." She pulls the boy who had beat Cam down over to me. "This is Santonio Nixon. He is also one of the younger Plumbers who joined us." She turned to the boy. "Toni, this is Dexter, the person I told you I was supporting."

We shook hands, exchanging greetings to one another.

"You can just call me Toni. That is what they call me after all." Said the boy, grinning. He steps back to look at me.

"Hmm, he seems about average height, nice eyes, vivid hair color, that's for sure. This one could definite fit for you." He stated jokingly. I could tell it was for Katherine because she was blushing an embarrassingly deep red, her eyes staring daggers at Toni. Not that he noticed though, because all he did was laugh. But I could feel my face blush as deep as hers was which just made Toni laugh harder and harder. Then all of us just ended up laughing and laughing about it the rest of the day, making it an almost unforgettable meeting.

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**Yay! I finished! It took me forever, but its done! I think it's a little too long though. Ah it looks so good though. After so much revising and rewriting and, my goodness it **_**did **_**take me quite awhile…Yikes! It's so late in the day!**

**Please Review, I wanna see many happy people tomorrow! Thanks to Lightning Bird and Eve for the good advice! I hope to get the third chapter of 'Another Day In The Making' finished by the end of June this time! I will challenge myself with this deadline, but like suggested by LB, I will not rush myself either. **

**Thank you all! -Hikaru**


	3. Another Person on the Other Side

Another Day in the Making

Chapter 3: Another Person on the Other Side

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Fusionfall characters in this chapter or the characters from Dexter's Laboratory.**

**Yay 3****rd**** chapter! I didn't think I would be able to get this far this quickly. But here I am! I hope you guys like this chapter. In this chapter, Katherine had forgotten (not surprisingly) to visit Dexter yesterday to repair her Hov-scooter so she comes the next day in hopes of getting it fixed. Katherine meets Mandark, who seems envious of Dexter and his newfound partner. That's all I'm gonna tell you. **

**Oh, there's one other thing. The situation of Dexter's finances and relations and such are based a little bit on Lightning Bird's Invisible Sun so LB, if you're reading this, please look over anything that might include bits of Invisible Sun relevance for errors and please advise me on such. Also, just to be safe, the specific timing of this story right now is somewhat between fall and winter. That I guess will have to fit the story, if not, please tell me.**

**Now read it!**

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I can't believe myself. How in the world did I manage to forget to get the stupid thing fixed? Oh well, it's not like it's a life-death situation or something. But it was my priority to get it functional no matter what. It was that or I'd have to deal with running as fast as I could just to get to class on time for the rest of the school year. I hated running.

I walk over to the front entrance of the house and knocked. The door opened showing a light silhouette of a boy in the doorway. It was Dexter.

"Katherine," Said the calm boy. "I was wondering when you would get here."

"I'm sorry, it's just that…well, I have a tendency to forget things. Normally it's just the small things that I forget. This is the first time I've ever forgotten something like this." I admitted.

I ponder over this myself, realizing that this _was_ a first. Usually I write something like that down, but apparently I didn't have time to. What could've made me forget something like this? I then saw Dexter close to my face, apparently trying to snap me out of it. I suddenly shrieked in surprise, falling backwards onto the hard concrete. I felt myself blushing hard so I turned my head away and got back up.

"Oh, sorry, I was just…" He murmured, hiding his face as well.

"It's okay, it's my fault. I was phasing out on you." I apologized, brushing off my sleeves for absolutely no reason at all. "Um, should we get to your lab right now? That is why I'm here, after all."

"Of course…to fix your scooter, right?" He said with a slight pause for me to reply, which I gave a positive answer within a silent nod of my head.

Dexter closed the door from the outside and gestured to walk around to the back. He followed behind me quietly. As I made my way around the corner of the house, I heard two voices, so I stopped. One of the voices, which belonged to a middle-aged man, discussed with the other, which was a woman's. It seemed the two were talking about nothing important really. Just about 'how nice the day was' and something strange. All I really heard was 'powerpuff' and 'Townsville'. Townsville…isn't that where Toni is having that concert?

"What is it?" Dexter asked me, making me jump out of my skin again.

"Oh! Um…" I murmured, snapping out of yet another trance of mine. "Are those, relatives?"

He looks over my shoulder to the backyard. He sighed slightly, then letting it slip away. He turned around and walked back.

"Wait! Dexter! Where are you going?"

"Follow me; I have another entrance to the laboratory." He explained without another word.

I look about the small hall-like grass area we had just entered to get to backyard, suddenly getting the feeling that there was someone, well, watching me.

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"Is it done yet?"

"Almost."

"………How about now?"

"Not quite finished."

"As the amazing Katherine, I demand that you tell me if you are done yet!" I spat quite dramatically.

Dexter, surprisingly enough, burst out laughing. I thought it was funny, but he actually didn't seem to be that kind of person to laugh, especially _that_ much. It almost looked like he would fall to the floor. In truth, I've never heard anybody except for Toni laugh at any of my jokes. That was usually his talent. After waiting for Dexter to finish his enjoyment of my now seemingly hilarious act, he finally calmed down and double-checked the now fixed scooter.

"Well, it's repaired to full functional abilities. Go ahead and try it out." He grinned in a sense of pride, settling it down on the tiled flooring.

I stared in amazement at the scooter, installing a newly charged battery into the slot. I look at Dexter, slightly raising a brow. "Are you sure you don't want some kind of tip or reward or something?"

"It would be nice, but your funding is more than enough for that." He gratified, sitting down into a small chair at the table.

I sighed as I adjusted the scooter's anti-gravity motor which sat upon the base of the handles, strapped tightly within the welded piece of metal I had applied to it. I launch the scooter which then hovered into the air as wonderfully as ever.

"There has to be _something _you want, say, like a Parts finder? A little bird told me you've needed one since you started the Mark 3 of the Null-void project, to help you find parts and such for it." I addressed to him.

Apparently it was true, because as soon as I spoke of said niche, his bright blue eyes had shown a desperate need for help. "Can you really? But what could I pay you back with? To tell you the truth, I really don't have any money of my own and-"

I stop him, putting a hand on his shoulder. "You don't need to pay me anything. Since finding parts for technology such as your Null-void projector will be mostly foreign tech, I will have to travel and meet with other beings aside from people here, so if I need to go somewhere as far as that, I'll be happy to. Traveling is like a career to me as well as exploring, so the fun of it is compensation enough. What do you say?"

I grin, lifting my hand from his shoulder. He looked at me obliviously, probably thinking that I had to be kidding. But I wasn't, I was actually quite serious. If it meant furthering the standards on technology, I'll do what I can to help.

"Are _you_ sure you wouldn't want anything in return?" He asked, still wondering if I really meant what I said.

I shook my head. "All you would have to do is tell me what you need and I'll get it for you, no questions asked. I'll pay all the traveling expenses too." I explained to him, making myself quite clear.

Dexter seemed to be unsure of this as much as he was astonished at my sincerity. But I thought it as an unsurprising that he seemed that way. At first he looked as if he was about to say something, but he stopped himself.

"How about this: We have tomorrow off of school, don't we?" I questioned. He nods slightly. "I'll come back in the afternoon to see if you have an answer for me then, okay?"

I lift up the scooter and snap it back into a more portable position, then putting in the crook of my arm. I walk over to the backyard entrance. Just before I stepped out into the night, I turned to him, making a sweep of my hair.

"Until then, think about it. In truth, I think that it's most likely that you won't get many opportunities like this where you are now. And remember this. Be thorough with your choices, otherwise you won't get anywhere."

------------------------------

She then exited the laboratory, the entrance shutting silently with the exception of a gust of wind pushing itself in through the crack. I turned the chair around from the table and stood up. She is very interesting person indeed. This was a much unexpected deal as well. I was well aware that I would need such a helper, but I never really expected for that help to come. Perhaps I should tell the Professor about this. He should know what to do. At least, I hope so. I stride over to the monitors, then noticing that Katherine had forgotten to take her bag with her. It sat in the small corner of the room, untouched. Then I remember her admittance to her tendencies to overlook things. It surprised me. I only thought as such since she didn't seem like that kind of person, to forget things.

I picked up the bag, clarifying it as Katherine's. It was a crimson shoulder bag which had small keychains with three small, laminated pictures attached to them. One of pictures was her and Toni at the amusement park, another one showing her posing happily in front of a small house at a younger age. But it was the third picture caught my attention the most. It was another picture of the house, but instead of just Katherine standing there, there two, optimistic-like couple holding her hands. I had assumed that these were her parents, since they looked so much like her.

The woman, who I suppose was her mother, looked youthful and almost seemed like a doll. She was wearing a sinuous blue dress, her hair long flowing down in elegant white curls. She had brimming blue eyes, showing like marbles in the sand. Her father, which stood to the left of his daughter, had dirty blond hair which looked as if it had the faintest brown tinge to it. He had a dark green vest and a black, long-sleeve shirt on, matching along with his black jeans, his hazel eyes burning with pride.

That's when I noticed that he looked as if he was holding yet another hand. Looking closely at the edge of the picture, I saw that it had been torn at that point. How unusual. I wonder what had happened there.

"Dexter, you have a message from Mandark." Said the computer, breaking the never-ending silence that had developed in the laboratory.

I looked up, startled out of concentration. It was irritating how he could call me this late at night. "Tell him I'm busy, I have no time for the likes of him this late in the day."

"But he said that—"

I cut it off, turning away from the screen. "What? That he wants to _borrow _some of my schematics again? I think not."

"Hey Dorkster." retorted a new voice.

There was only one person I knew that could call me that with such a confident tone, and that was Mandark.

-----------------------------------

"Let me out of here, you megalomaniacal geek!" I screamed in rage, stomping my feet in the pitch black darkness of wherever I was. All I could see was the dim lighting produced by the electric prison around me.

"I know you can hear me, you twit!" I yell again. No use. I might as well scream at a wall, if I could see one, that is.

After tiring myself out from all the ranting and yelling at the darkness, I let myself slump to the ground, furious at the hole I buried myself in. How did I get myself into this mess anyway? I try to look through the current situation at hand, just I trained myself to do since _they_ had left me, alone in dark as much as I was now as it is. Kathy, you need to focus on the problem, not them. Especially not _them_. I looked about the small cubicle I had been confined in by him. I could only recall that when I exited Dexter's lab, I walked a little bit, then something hit me. Literally too, and to be specific, it hit me in the back of my head, not to mention it stung like as if something had cracked my skull open. That was all I could remember. What happened soon after I woke up gave me a look at the worst thing about me. I always shoot before thinking.

That boy called Susan I had met in grade school all those years ago, which was the one who had knocked me out earlier, wanted me to sponsor him instead of Dexter. But I refused to. There was no way I was going to join him. Not in this lifetime. So I ended up here, in a dark, quiet space. I knew I could have convinced him to let me go the easy way, but I spoke too soon, literally.

I knew him though. We only met in those days until he moved. All I remember from those times was that he was really smart and he was nice to all the girls in the class. He looked like one too. We would usually play with each other, him and me.

But this was extremely ironic on my opinion. I never expected to see him at all, especially in the same neighborhood. Now he just knocks me out like an insect with a boulder, and expects me to cooperate with him. It was crazy enough just to see him as he was. He turned from the nice little boy I knew as a friend into a mad scientist. You don't really see that in everyday life very often, now do you? It seemed that he had cut his hair short to one of those bowl haircuts. He wore a dark cape which hung behind him, lightly touching the ground. Then instead of the pink dress-shorts he wore back then was replaced with a pair of overall shorts and a white collared shirt along with a large red tie. In opinion, I found that kind of outfit pretty tacky.

I then suddenly realized that the walls around me weren't electric at all. That was a lie. When I was thinking through all of this, I felt this weird feeling of walking through some kind of field. I step back into the center of the prison then tried to touch one of the walls. My hand pushed onto the wall then slid through it like a diver through water.

I could feel a whole new presence taking over, body and soul.

--------------------------------

"I prefer that you do not call me by that wretched name, Susan." I retorted as I turned to my enemy.

"It's Mandark. Mandark! And if I feel the need to call you Dorkster, then that's how it will go, Dorkster." Spat the other boy genius.

"Whatever," I groaned. "So, what is this important thing that you have to call _me _so late for?"

"Well maybe I just wanted to call you at random." He said, smirking slightly.

"We both know that you hate that kind of stupidity and would prefer not to call for someone that you hate even more than that." I cleared to him quickly enough to make someone fall back and retreat. "Now what do you really want from me?"

He frowned, dissatisfied in his attempt to annoy me. "Hmph. Well why don't you look for yourself."

He typed something from his keyboard which brought up a small corner cam which was then widened to fill the rest of the screen. The cam recorded what seemed to be a small one-person cubicle, the walls made of maintained electricity. But there was nothing in it, except for a large jacket on the floor. It looked like Katherine's.

"What is it that I'm supposed to be looking at? A jacket?" I asked him, thinking of this as strange.

"A jacket? What do you mean?" He questioned himself, looking confused. Then his eyes widened. Apparently he knew something I did not. "Oh no. But how did she—"

He was going finish his sentence, but something exploded, followed by another explosion, and another, which caused a field of dust and dust rise from the debris. Seconds later, a single fist came out of the mist and hit Mandark in the face. That really had to hurt. Another moment later, the fist had appeared to belong to a calm, but furious Katherine. She bent down, dragging a frightened and shocked Mandark up by the collar of his shirt, dropping him into a nearby chair. She was glaring at him fiercely with—blue eyes? I was pretty sure she had hazel eyes last time I checked. I set the camera to 'record' mode, still staring at her eyes. The first time I set my sights on Katherine, her eyes would blaze with pride and the utmost confidence, never showing weakness.

But these eyes were different.

Unsettlingly different, as if they weren't of this world. These otherworldly eyes showed no emotion, no life lying within. It was as if they could literally kill someone with a single glance.

"Katherine?" I muttered into the microphone, trying to bring her out of herself.

But she didn't look to see who the voice came from. She just stared, her seething gaze never leaving its place. She lowered to Mandark's ear, whispering words the mike on the other side did not pick up. When she was done speaking, Mandark gaped in fear, terrified of her words. She shuffled through one of her pockets, pulling out a small trigger. It was a detonator! But a detonator to what? Think Dexter, it's obviously a bomb. But where could it be?

That's when Katherine finally spoke. "Tell me, where are they?" She asked Mandark, not a sliver of emotion leaving her lips.

"W-what are you talking about? Who are 'they'?" He slurred. I found that to be a good question.

"Where are they?" She asked again. "Where are Somona and Derek Shiloh? Tell me now or this whole building implodes!" She yelled at Mandark angrily, her thumb ready upon the trigger.

"Somona and Derek Shiloh? I don't even know who you're talking about!" He yelled back, now gaining the momentum of the argument.

"Then this lab will be destroyed whether you are in it or not." She said mercilessly cold, her eyes glinting like stars.

She took one last look at the screen, and in that instant, her eyes flashed hazel, worried and captivated. Then changed back to blue again. She pressed the button, setting off a series of bombs within Mandark's laboratory, one after another, until the camera finally cut off, leaving me shocked and full of questions. I stop the recording feature and dash out of the lab towards the other side of the street.

------------------------------------

Explosions popped here and there as I ran away from Susan's laboratory. Susan, who had fainted from all the excitement, was atop my shoulders. After I was far enough away from the place, I stopped and closed my eyes.

_It was dark again. I had watched the whole scene of events fall in front of me like a drama on a stage. But I had no control of my body at the time. I couldn't speak; I couldn't take command of any of the actions that I had made earlier. I was a doll of a puppeteer. 'But who,' I wondered, 'was the puppeteer?'_

"_I was the puppeteer, and you were puppet. That is as simple as it will get." Said a voice from within the darkness._

"_Who are you? What are you?" I cried out, trying to figure out whose or where the voice was._

"_I am you, I think." It said again._

'_How though? I don't have a split personality…' I thought wistfully._

"_Who said you did?" The voice replied again to my thoughts. I found this to be very disturbing._

"_Then tell me, what are you?"_

"_I am afraid it is unknown even to me. _You_ will have to figure that out."_

"_Well that's very helpful of you, whoever you are."_

"_Your welcome." Replied the voice complacently. "You are safe for now. Until then, I will let you know that I am always here to help, not to fight."_

"_Can you please tell me something?"_

"_What is it?"_

"_Earlier, when you bombed Susan's laboratory, you asked him, and I quote. 'Where are Somona and Derek Shiloh?' Who _are _Somona and Derek? I don't believe I know anyone by those names."_

The voice did not reply. But this was only because I had been woken up from what seemed to be a nap, by a frightened-half-to-death Dexter. I noticed that I was also lying in a small room on a bed. Susan had, and quite reluctantly, sat in a small chair beside a closed door. I don't know why though.

"Mmmm, Dexter? Where are we and why do I feel so queasy?" I groaned, running my hand through my hair, then realizing that my hair was out of its usual ponytail.

"Where're in my bedroom, the queasy part I'm not so sure of." He replied, glaring back at Susan. He glared back.

The moment he said that this was _his_ bedroom, something in my head screamed "awesome!" and "This is so embarrassingly nerve-racking…" in one incredibly fast combo of "This is so-awe-embara-som-ingly nerve-racking" that it made me shout just that in general. And ironically enough, all eyes were on me.

"Excuse me, I sneezed." I slipped out, convincing them as easily as it is talking to any other boy.

"Bless you." Said the two simultaneously. They both went back to staring at each other again; leaving me a moment to find out what went on in the past day.

It went like this:

1) Went to Dexter's house to get the Hov-scooter fixed

2) Got it fixed

3) Offered help with Mark 3 Null-void project

4) Went for home and bed

5) Got knocked out and imprisoned by Susan

6) Imploded his lab

7) Met this "other me"

And number eight was now. Simple enough, I suppose.

"Dexter?" I called to him, getting his attention.

"Yes?"

"May I ask what happened?"

"I'm not so sure myself, but," He answered shooting daggers at Susan. "I'm definitely sure that Mandark knows. Am I right?"

"Mandark? Who's Mandark?" I asked, having no clue what went on while I was with the other me. I followed Dexter's gaze to Susan, wondering if perhaps he had changed his name.

"Mandark is that guy over there." He responded with a finger pointing at Susan. He nodded.

"I see. But that still doesn't answer my question Dexter."

"Apparently," He began, "Mandark heard of this funding between us and wanted it for himself. So he kidnapped you in hopes of making me give your sponsorship up for your freedom. But because of your escape that can no longer be of use now can it Mandark?" He retorted mostly towards Mandark, who was steaming his stress into a hard, solid stare at Dexter.

"I apologize then. I am sorry to be such a bother at the time Dexter." I said quietly, even though I didn't feel any sort of remorse at the time.

"What do you mean apologize? This wasn't at all your fault." He said, considering my words as sincere.

"Then who is it that you suggest, is the one who should apologize?"

"I think that would be me, but I'm not going to say it." Interrupted Mandark quite stubbornly.

"Well then don't. It won't hurt anyone either way if you don't say anything." I hit hard and clear for Mandark, shutting him up faster than Dexter could start an argument.

------------------------------------------

After leaving for the night, I got to the house at what seemed to be dawn. I felt tired from all the things that had happened last night, or tonight, whichever one it was it didn't matter to me. I needed to get some sleep. Moeka had been awake the whole night as well, wanting to wait for me to come back. I told her that she needn't ask about what had happened. She could tell I was tired and I desperately required a bed. I soon fell into a warm, heavy quilt and against a soft pillow, quickly going to sleep.

I woke up late the next day, but I didn't care. My new objective for the day was to research.

I still needed to figure out who Somona and Derek was, and the last name. Shiloh. It seemed so close yet so far away you couldn't grasp it. Why did it feel so near to me then? I needed an answer. Research, that's what I need. Somona and Derek Shiloh………What did it mean?

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**Oh gawd. I've written this on Microsoft Word and it is seriously eight pages long. I had a great time writing it all, but wow, it's almost nine pages now. I feel so tired from all of this; thank the heavens it's done. So, this is the third chapter. Sorry if Dexter was a little bit out of character in the part where they finally fixed the scooter though. I couldn't think of what to write at the time. **

**So who are these Somona and Derek? And will Katherine ever find out who protected her from the explosion? Stay updated, for the next chapter is soon to come! (I hope.)**

**Either way, please review the story for now. I can think on your criticism to help me think through the story. Thank you all,**

**Hikaru**


	4. Raindrops on Saturday

Another Day in the Making

Chapter 4: Raindrops on Saturday

**Disclaimer: Look, if Fusionfall was mine, do you think I'd still be writing this? Oh well, to put it simply, I do not own Fusionfall.**

**It's been three days of research on the people called Somona and Derek but no progress had been made on the way. Katherine, who feels that she will never see the "Other her" again, is depressed by the showering of rain on her window pane.**

**This chapter begins in the Study at home where Katherine is sitting, waiting for the rain to stop…**

--------------------------------------

It was raining. No, pouring. There was a song for that. How did it go again? It went a little like this, I think……_Rain, rain, go away, come again some other day _something…something, oh forget it_._ I attempt a look out the window. The window was blocked of its view of the yard by the pelting of raindrops.

It had been three straight days and there still no search results on a Somona or Derek Shiloh. Even the CSI's and Witness Protection's main database (Which I had to hack into a million times ten, not as fun as it sounds.) didn't have a tab on them. Shoot, even the last name, Shiloh, didn't leave me anything. Not to mention I haven't heard another word from the "Other me" since Wednesday, when I guess _she_ imploded Mandark's lab. I never really had control over that. Then I heard a knock at the door.

"Con, you know you're welcome in the Study whenever you feel is necessary." I replied to the man, even though I knew it could be Moeka. But she never liked disturbing people in the middle of their work and neither did she.

The door swung open, not a sound to be heard. Con stood in the doorway. He looked a bit pale.

"What is it Con? Is something wrong?" I asked, wondering if perhaps maybe he hasn't gotten enough sun lately.

"Everything is fine Katherine, but there is a man at the door. He said his name was Max Tennyson." He reported to me. Max, you are one surprising man.

I sighed. "Okay. You can let them in. Max is an associate of mine from the Plumbers. Be sure to offer them something warm. The rain out there can be as cold as ice in winter. Tell them that I will be with them in a moment."

Con nodded in approval and shut the door quietly behind him. After assuring myself that his footsteps had faded, I stand up from my mother's desk area and turn off father's old computer.

------------------------------------------------

This was so boring. It was a Saturday afternoon and it was raining. No, scratch that, it was flooding. Not to mention that dweeb was here. Grandpa Max said that he would take us to Twin Lakes to see a friend, and surprisingly, he said it was a girl. In fact, she was Ben's and my age. But since it started raining, he drove here to her house. We were inside it right now if you could believe it. A man in a chef's outfit brought us some hot tea and hot chocolate. It was the same man who greeted us at the door. Grandpa Max took the tea as Ben and I chose the hot chocolate.

"This is so weird, we're in somebody's house and we don't even know who it is." Muttered Ben, who was sipping the hot chocolate from his mug.

"Oh don't even start, you spaz. I'm as bored as you are right now." I spat at my annoying cousin, feeling just as indifferent as he was.

"Oh stop it you two, our host is here." Said Grandpa Max, who sat next to us on the couch, setting down his cup on the coffee table.

In fact she was. It was a girl, slightly taller than Ben, was standing there in the hallway. She had long Ivory hair which she put up in a ponytail, leaving strands of it here and there. She had a pair of dark khakis and a bright yellow jacket on, zipped up to the top. She had hazel eyes which shown like stars behind a pair of square glasses.

"Hello Max Tennyson. It's so nice of you to come and visit." She greeted, her voice bittersweet.

"It's good to see you too. Did you get glasses?"

"Yes, I did." She replied quite quickly.

"How has it been for you and the boy genius?"

"You mean Dexter?" She assumed, sitting down in a chair across from us. Grandpa Max nodded. "Well, the sponsorship is in good placement for production of his new invention of the Null-void Mark 3."

"And what about the job offer? How did that go?"

She took a deep breath, grinning. "He said yes."

Grandpa Max smiled at this as well. "Congratulations Katherine! I hope that this will help the cause greatly."

"So," She began. "Who are these two melancholy looking strangers over here?" She looked to us with curious eyes.

"Let me introduce you to my grandchildren. This is Ben," He said patting Ben's head lightly. "And the girl next to is Ben's cousin, Gwen. Ben, Gwen, this is the friend I told you about. This is Katherine Takano."

My eyes widened in surprise. _The _Katherine Takano? The same Katherine that's the Deviant Artist on Deviant's Blog? There's no way. (AN: In ADITM, Deviant's Blog is the same as Deviant Art combined with Fanfiction in real life.)

"Umm Katherine, you wouldn't happen to have a Deviant's Blog account, would you?" I asked her.

"Yeah, I do." She cocked her head. "Why do you ask?"

"I'm Flare Jade! The writer for the story 'Tammy Ford and the Gem Incident'!" I exclaimed excitedly.

Katherine eyes grew wide as well, grinning gradually to a thrilled smile. "So _you're_ Flare Jade? I've been trying to catch up with you for a very long time, you and your writing, you know that?"

"How come you haven't gotten on lately? You haven't been online for three days!"

Katherine suddenly frowned slightly looking down to the floor, then to Grandpa Max. She stared at him in a hurried look, gesturing with her eyes to do something. He stared back with the same motion. She sighed and turned back to us.

"Hey, how about you and Ben go and get some more hot chocolate?" She looks towards the man who had given us the refreshments before. "You see the tall man over there?" We nodded. "That's Mr. Roy. Ask him for some and he'll be glad to and if you like, you can try sneaking some marshmallows past him if you can. They're in a blue jar on the fridge."

Ben and I smiled, nodding in excitement. We stand up from the couch and follow behind

to the kitchen.

--------------------------------------------------

I wait for Con, Ben and Gwen to exit the room.

"You know, it's not really polite to show up unattended. You didn't call me first. But then again, you've probably done it so often you most likely never try to bother yourself about that." I stated, quite aggravated at this irrational behavior.

Max sat quietly on the couch simply showing no remorse for this as if he had done no wrong. "What do you think I should've done? I don't know your phone number."

I groaned loudly inside my head. This man was so—so frustrating, that is, when he felt it was appropriate. "What did you want to talk about?"

"What do you mean? I only came here to check with you, that's all." He argued plainly, grinning a fake grin.

I glared at him, not fooled by this by one bit. He seemed to be that kindly, sarcastic person on the outside, but he always had reasons for everything he did. Even this little "visit"had a fair reason than just checking with me.

"Max, I know you very well and it even scares me how much I do. But anyway, if there really is nothing," Which I doubt was it by 110 percent. "I was wondering if perhaps you knew anything about someone named Somona or Derek Shiloh."

He looked surprised at this mentioning. As if it was unexpected and sudden. "No, why do you ask?"

"………….Hmm, okay then. It's nothing. I needed to research on them for a school biography, that's all. But for some reason, I can't find anything." I said. His eyes shown that he knew more that he was letting off, and I never liked being left out of something.

So we sat there in silence for a little while, only the small sound the pot whistling in the kitchen. Then Max spoke out, as if to cut through the quiet in the room.

"I suggest looking through the Plumbers' profiles. Who knows, there might be—" He was going to finish but there was a flash of green light and the noise of breaking glass in the kitchen.

I jumped from my chair in surprise, almost falling over onto the table. I tried looking from my position towards the kitchen opening. Then out of nowhere, a Galvin came skidding from the kitchen floor to the living room flooring. I instinctively pull out my pistol from the inside of my jacket and aimed at the alien.

"Galvin," I classified. "State your reason of position here on Earth or face being arrested by Plumber authorities for trespassing of a civilian's property on a foreign planet."

"What in the—Katherine! It's okay! That's Ben!" Shouted Max over my formal report, which you can assume the report was a threat. Well, in a policeman sort of way.

"Huh? Ben? Where?" I turned to the man, suddenly confused at this proclamation.

"Right here Katherine!" Squeaked the small Galvin. I look down with uncertainty at it, puzzled at the current situation. "Calm down and put away the gun, before someone gets hurt." It replied to my reaction.

I slowly return my pistol back to its hiding place and picked up the Galvin version of Ben, then sitting in the chair behind me. Gwen appeared from the kitchen unscathed, carrying a dust pan and broom. Con walked from behind her, taking the cleaning supplies from Gwen and went back into the kitchen. Setting Ben down on the couch again, minutes later he changed back into his human self in another flash of green light. Gwen then came over carrying a tray of three cups of hot chocolate which had small burnt things in them.

"Uhh, if don't mind me asking, what's in the hot chocolate?" I asked hesitantly.

She set down the tray on the coffee table, handing me a cup. "Umm, roasted marshmallows?" She glared at her cousin, giving him the eye.

"S-sorry Katherine, I tried to roast the marshmallows so the hot chocolate would be more interesting and—well, I accidentally set off the Omnitrix and…" Trailed off Ben, who felt guilty for whatever happened.

"Wait a second. You have the Omnitrix?" I questioned, now understanding the happening of him turning into a Galvin. Now I turned to Max. "Max, how did this happen?"

He explained to me about the day the three had gone camping the first day of summer vacation, and the pod that Ben had come upon that same night which held the Omnitrix within.

"Ah, I see. Ben, can I look at it?" I asked him. He nodded, stretching out his arm towards me.

I examined the Omnitrix closely, then pressing the Options button. A cylindrical shaped version of a scrolling wheel popped from the center of it. A silhouette-like projection of a Galvin lit up on the top of it. I rolled it back and forth, flipping through the different aliens that were residing within it.

"The Omnitrix is a very unique object, but very dangerous. I suggest that you keep it in great responsibility." I told Ben, and then turned to Max. "Max, is this what you came to see me about?"

"I'm afraid so." He said grimly. "Ben has decided to remove the Omnitrix, and for good. I agree with this as well. The Omnitrix has been malfunctioning lately and has started to work on its own accord."

"Then why did you come here?"

"I tried to get in contact Asmyth, but as it seems, his contact information has been changed."

I raised my brow, confused. "Why would he do that? He isn't in danger of anything, is he?"

"I'm not sure, but it looks as if he is."

What could have happened? Vilgax was said to have destroyed so couldn't possibly be anything with him. What's going on here?

"So you want me to remove the Omnitrix?"

I look at Ben, seeing dismay with what seemed to be about the Omnitrix. He looked back at me. "Yes, I do."

"……Okay. I'll help you." I told him. I take a look at the Omnitrix, explaining how the functioning worked as I went. "There were four modes that Asmyth had created for the Omnitrix's prototype: Activation mode, Full Access mode, Ark mode and Hibernate mode. If my theory is correct, he must've only put three of the four within this Omnitrix. Activation is the most basic of these modes. Activation lets you borrow an alien's form and ability. Full Access gives you the choice of all the aliens that rest inside the Omnitrix. Hibernate shuts down the entire Omnitrix and puts it into an eternal sleep mode, hence the name. I am unable to tell you what Ark's purpose is. Only Asmyth knows its meaning……"

I looked up to notice that Ben was sort of surprised at this, almost scared even. Perhaps I said too much? Or maybe it's the fact that I know so much in general to begin with that's scaring him? Oh well, can't change that now. Who knows, maybe it might be useful information later on to him. But he was, as I assumed pretty accurately, no older than ten or eleven. Most kids his age never liked listening to such rambling. I could be wrong though. Maybe, just maybe.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Well," Katherine said, leading us to the front door. "That's all I can do for now. I can't guarantee that it will come off, but it is shutting down as we speak."

"How long will it take?" Asked Grandpa Max.

"Hmm, from the looks of the Omnitrix's current durability, I'd say it shouldn't take any longer than 48 hours for it to shut off completely. If you have any problems, let me know. But, make sure you contact me first." She gave Grandpa a mischievous glare, handing him a slip of paper, which had a set of numbers scrawled across it.

"Hey Kathy, will I be hearing from you about the new sequel yet? On Deviant's Blog." Gwen asked, looking at Katherine with anticipation.

"Ah, the sequel?" Katherine mused, putting a finger on her lips. She grinned. "Don't worry, I promise to read as soon as possible. Really, I will." Gwen and Grandpa Max walk out the door to the RV while I followed behind them. But a hand stuck out in front of me.

"Oh Ben, I have to tell you something before you go."

"Yeah? What is it?"

"Will you make sure of something and never tempt yourself to it?" She said in an utmost serious tone.

"…….That depends on what it is." I said cautiously.

"You mustn't use the Omnitrix until it is able to be removed."

"What?! You have to be kidding me!!"

"I'm not. It is important that you do not use it at all in order for the Omnitrix to shut down. If you do, you might cause it to self destruct. Trust me, you will not like what that does."

I glare at the Omnitrix angrily, trying to focus my frustration on something other than Katherine. Don't use the Omnitrix until it is able to be removed. According to Katherine, it would take 48 hours for it to shut down completely. Two days without going hero. Man this stunk.

"Katherine?"

"Yes Ben?"

"How do you know Asmyth?"

She looked at me with curious hazel eyes. "My mother was one of the few people who designed the Omnitrix for Asmyth. I'm not sure how, but for some reason he knew me through her."

I was shocked by this. "Wait, then why didn't your mother shut off the Omnitrix instead of you? Now that I remember, how come we didn't see your mom or your dad?"

She couldn't reply. Her mouth opened, but she didn't say anything. "I-it's because……they both died……in a train collision. I'm the only one who came out alive. I'm not sure how though…"

"……" I really should say something. I feel so weird. But losing both parents at the same time? That's harsh. "I'm sorry Katherine, I shouldn't have mentioned it…"

"No Ben, it's okay. I've gotten used to it. I just haven't really admitted it to anybody in a long time."

I pull out a piece of scrunched up paper, flattening it out. Asking Katherine for pencil, I scribble my cell phone number on it. "…here. I want you to have it. Maybe if you wanna talk sometime, it's fine with me." I turn my head slightly, avoiding eye contact with her. For some reason, my face was heating up. I felt nervous. I didn't know why though.

"Uhh, thanks…but you don't need to give me your number, Ben. I can contact you through your Grandpa if we need to."

"……It's not about the Omnitrix." I said, whiping my head around towards her.

She looked surprised. No, actually she _was_ surprised. She blinked at it even. "O-okay…" She mumbled, putting the paper into her jacket pocket.

"Hey dweeb! Grandpa Max says to hurry up or we'll ditch you!" Yelled Gwen from the door of the RV.

"I'm coming, I'm coming!" I shoot a glare at Gwen, then looking back at Katherine.

"You should get going. Otherwise they'll leave without you." She said with a look towards me. I nod and walk out the door.

"Hey Katherine."

"Yeah?"

"Can I call you Kath?"

She cracked a smile. "Sure."

As I waved goodbye as we backed out of the driveway, I noticed something. Her face was wet and yet, it wasn't raining anymore.

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**Whew, after all that, I feel like taking a small break. *Goes to the kitchen. Comes back with a slice of Lemon Meringue Pie.* Yay pie! Anyway, thank you for reading Chapter Four: Raindrops on Saturday. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did. Please review this chapter!**

**Thank you all,**

**Hikaru**


	5. Pulling Strings and Legs

Another Day In the Making

Chapter 5: Pulling Strings and Legs

**Sorry it took so long to update. I had a bad case of writer's block this month and it made me do a nose dive in my current writing momentum. It puts me out of habit, really. All the less, please review this chapter! In the last chapter when Kathy said her parents were in a bus collision, she meant train collision. That will be edited ASAP. **

**It's winter break for Katherine and friends and Kathy's willing to make the best of it by starting it off with the semi-annual concert that's coming up. But is it really going to turn out the way she thought it would be? And will we ever find out about Somona and Derek? Maybe. **

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I had just remembered it after all this time, all thanks to Ben Tennyson. I realized that I already knew who Somona and Derek were. This would make the situation a whole lot easier. I must remember to return the favor. And what he said before leaving…Kath. Nobody's called me that for a long time. Not since brother disappeared. It's been eight years after all…

"Ring! Beep-beep ring! Ring! Beep-bee—" I opened my ringing cell phone with the flick of my thumb.

"Toni?"

"Kathy, how'd you know it was me?" Asked the seemingly elated boy.

"Caller ID, duh. What is it Toni?"

"It's Seph! She got the flu over the weekend. Now we need a new vocalist, so…" He hesitated a little then continued. "The band was wondering if maybe you could be the back-up vo—"

"No can do Toni, I have important business to attend to." I cut him off.

"But you're the only good vocalist in the whole school now! And we can't cancel the concert either. It's too late for that."

"No 'buts' Toni. If you can't find a good singer in the school, try outside of school. I'm sure you'll find someone."

"Kathy, we already tried. C'mon, please! You know you can!" Taunted Toni.

He was right, I could sing a pretty good song when I touch with the microphone, but it never really interested me. Unless… "Alright, I'll back you up just this once…"

"Yes! I knew we could count on you!" He cheered.

"On one condition…" I continued, killing his small celebration.

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First thing's first. I needed to get ready for the big concert. I told Con and Moeka to take the weekend off by Friday, so I would have to check if everything was locked up when I leave. A whole five days had gone by and it was already Friday. I got dressed and called to let Toni I would be coming by early so that I wouldn't have to go through any traffic on the way.

I walked to the Subway Station, which was only ten minutes away from the house. Getting my ticket from the booth and passing my way through the mess of commuters, I find the yellow line and stood before it. Looking left and right, I kept myself at bay while I anticipated the train's arrival. There were a lot people traveling today even though it was a Friday.

----------------------

I exited the Subway Station in Townsville into the streets. Following the directions Toni had e-mailed me earlier, this looked like it could only be a fifteen to twenty minute walk to the Bandshell from here. As I passed through Townsville, I couldn't help but compare it to Washington DC. The large population, the crowded streets, the tall buildings, there was so much resemblance between the two. But there was this strange presence here. Something that was abnormal. Or perhaps, someone. I couldn't help but think that there was going to be something more than the concert happening today.

I had gotten to the Bandshell by 7 or so, which meant they had only hour to rehearse for the show. There were only two songs to play so they needed things to go smoothly. The concert lets the local children from Townsville, Genius Grove and Peach Creek Commons play on stage and perform the arts like music, drama and choreography. There was a concert every six months so there would be plenty of time for kids to practice their skills. Toni's band, the Modernists, has 1 vocalist, 2 guitarists, one of them is also the vocalist, one person on the Bass and one drummer. They usually played in every concert, hoping to become well known around town. Since Seph, the band's singer, had caught the Flu, they wanted me to help them in the concert. So I did.

But I never said I would sing.

"Kathy! There you are!"

Toni saw me coming around the corner, meeting with me right there. He was wearing a light green sweater vest which had the band's name and a white cross behind it on the vest. Underneath he had a black long sleeve shirt that he added cuffed white gloves to. He also wore a pair of dark brown pants and a set of black Vans.

"Hey Toni. Am I late?" I ask with a smirk.

"Actually you're just in time! I feel so excited."

"How's the back-up? Do you think she's good enough for the band?"

He looked at me as if he forgot. "Oh! Yeah, she's actually pretty great. But you won't tell Seph will you? She'd kill me if she heard me say that."

"I don't know, I'm sure she's bound to figure it out somehow."

"Did you get the VIP pass backstage?"

"Yeah, its right……here……oh, cripes."

"Oh man, don't tell me you forgot it."

"No, I just, misplaced it."

He glared at me. "Okay, I forgot it at home. Happy?"

We both groaned in unison, most of the groaning done by me at my own bad habit. He said that it was okay and that it wasn't that important to have it, it just meant I wouldn't be able to hear them rehearse before the concert.

--------------------------------------------

I sat in the second row of seats nearest to the stage. While waiting for the concert to start, there was a large crowd of people filing into the many rows of seats. It wouldn't be long until all of the seats became occupied. I watched as the lights onstage began to brighten and come to full capacity. The concert was going to start any minute now.

"Alright! They're gonna start the concert." I squealed in excitement.

"Really? It looks like I came just in time then."

I felt a hand touch my shoulder. I looked at the hand. It was purple.

---------------------------------------------

"Gyaah!" Katherine jumped three feet from her chair, almost falling onto the person in front. After apologizing repeatedly, her head swiveled towards me. Her eyes were a browner hazel, a set of silver rimmed glasses hiding their gaze. That is, if you could call that a gaze after what just happened and all. She was wearing her hair down today. She had a satin blue coat with a set of dark blue khakis. She was also wearing a light orange shirt underneath. She looked almost like a secretary.

"D-Dexter?! What the heck are you doing here?" She stammered. A little startled today, aren't we?

"I'm here to watch the concert. Why else would I be here?" I replied casually.

Her facial expression turned from surprised to embarrassed. She slapped a hand to her forehead, muttering under her breath. "Really? I didn't think you would go to something like a local concert..."

"Did you get glasses?"

"Glasses?" She patted around her face with her fingers, finding the pair of glasses sitting against her nose. "Oh, those glasses. Yeah, I changed to glasses a week ago or so. I used to wear contacts, but after researching online a bit, I read that it would be best to use glasses instead. They're thought to be more efficient."

"I see." I said, coinciding with her.

There was a weird silence between the two of us besides the noises from the audience that had formed. For some reason I didn't know what to say, like as if I didn't know anything. Then I remembered about that night when Mandark's laboratory was imploded. The night when she changed. Those blue eyes…

"Katherine, remember last Wednesday, when Mandark, well, you know…" I mentioned cautiously.

Katherine lowered her head, then looked at me plainly. "Yes, I do."

"Do you remember anything?"

She hesitated to answer me. "Yes, and no. I don't remember much from then."

"What parts do you recall?" I noticed something, this was becoming more like an interrogation than a couple of questions.

"All I can remember was stepping through some kind of field of some sort that surrounded me. Susan, I mean Mandark claimed that it was electric wall but it seems that he lied about that." She lowered her head once more, not wanting to say anything else. I couldn't blame her. It was a strange day for the three of us.

"Who's that Dexter? A friend of yours?"

I turned to look at who it was. It was the Professor. "Yeah. Professor, this is Katherine Takano, the associate I told you about."

He shook hands with her. "Really? It's nice to finally meet you in person Katherine. I've heard a lot about you from Dexter."

She glanced at me questionably, then looked back at the Professor. "Charmed. You're Professor Utonium aren't you? I've read about you in several of your articles."

Katherine looked towards the Bandshell, noticing something. I look too. There was a group of kids coming out onto the stage, instruments in hand. "It looks like they're setting up for the first set of bands." Katherine said partly to herself. "Would you like to sit here with me? I don't mind."

"Of course." Replied the Professor. "Dexter, would you like to join us?"

I nodded, sitting down between Katherine and the Professor. "Professor, where are the girls? I thought they would've joined us by now."

"They went backstage to cheer on Buttercup. They said they'll be here soon." He said.

"Oh, that's right."

"Look, they're starting." Said Katherine.

The back part of the stage was blackened. On the stage was a man in a black suit. He took the microphone from out of his coat pocket. "Welcome, ladies and gents, to the 12th semi-annual children's concert. This year's concert will include the Pan Pipers, the Ballet club, the Modernists, and Rock-Pop Revolution. Please, enjoy the show." He said, stepping to the side. "And now, for our first performance, the Mod--" "KAAABOOOOM!!!"

-----------------------------

"KAAABOOOOM!!!" The side of the Bandshell crumbled and blew to bits in a blast of a yellow beam. You could hear yelling and screaming and threats coming from in there from the moment the waking sound of disaster rebounded out into the air. I could only imagine what the city would think of this. I just hoped that Toni wasn't the source of it, otherwise it would be just like that time at the Elementary graduation ceremony. I remember the newspaper named it "Academics Reaches New Low."

"Uh, excuse me boys. I have something that needs tending to." I told the two scientists. I rush through the running, screaming people, making my way towards the staircase that led up onto the platform. I skip three at a time up the steps, almost tripping here and there. I make it to the top, busting into the backstage area. The screaming and yelling became louder and I could hear the words that were being yelled.

"Look at what you did now you spoiled little brat!"

"Someone's gonna be in trouble and it's definitely not going to be us!"

"It's not my fault!"

"It is so Morbucks! Do you even know how to use this thing? You could've killed somebody!"

I walk ever so close to the voices, the owners finally coming into view. It was four girls. One of them, which wore a yellow shirt and skirt with a black stripe across her stomach, was surrounded by three of the other girls which wore the same outfits except theirs were green, pink and blue. I saw the girl who was wearing the pink outfit holding a laser gun. The girls in green and blue stood beside her. I walk quietly behind her, taking a chance to swipe the gun. I succeeded and hefted it in my hand.

"And just what do you think you're doing with this?" I said in a stern tone.

The three girls turned around, looking at me, surprised. I recognized the girl in the green.

"You! Was this your doing?" I asked her, pointing my finger.

"Watch where you're pointing that thing, or you just might lose it." She growled. I look from her to the other girls.

"Who are these girls, you groupie or something?" I spat at her. "I thought I said not to do anything other than what I asked of you while you were here."

"I did, but this copycat just had to crash the concert, eh Morbucks?" She said, glaring at the girl in yellow.

"I wasn't crashing your petty little concert, I just wanted to try out and I just happened to be qualified enough for it."

"And I guess you brought the laser gun as an instrument huh? I believe that completely. I bet you were gonna to try running off with Dexter again, weren't you?"

"Wait a second, you know Dexter?" I asked in the middle of their argument.

"Yeah, and what's it to you, shrimp?" The girl in green retorted.

"Hey, I'm not that short. I blame the genes. Besides, I'm an associate of his."

"Not yet. It's not officially on paper so you're sort of like an intern." Said a familiar, Russian-accented voice. That would be Dexter.

"Dexter, you know this girl?" She asked the genius. He nodded.

"And you actually know this punk?" I also asked him.

"Hey! Who are you calling a punk?" She said.

"You, obviously."

"Yes. From the looks of things, I assume you two have already met." He said. "Don't you agree, Professor?"

"Yes, it seems so." Said the Professor, who seemed appeared from out of nowhere. "Girls, did Princess Morbucks do all this to the Bandshell or did someone else take part as well?"

"We also did some damage as well Professor, but we promise to pick up after ourselves, right girls?" Said the pink girl.

The other two nodded. The yellow one stood in place, saying nothing at all.

"And Morbucks, did you really intend to attend the concert?" The Professor asked softly but in a strict voice. She didn't exactly answer except with a small _hmph._

"Whatever. I'm outta this stupid concert. I knew it would be lame anyways." And with that, she revealed a rocket booster from her back and flew low, snatching the laser gun from my hand. "See ya later, losers!"

"After her!" Said the pink girl. In a flash of pink, blue and green, they chased the yellow girl out of the Bandshell and into Townsville.

That was, well, I don't know how to put it. "What the heck just happened?" Yeah, that was it.

To be continued...

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**I have noticed that this part of the story is actually really long, so I plan on making it into a few separate chapters instead of a huge novel thing. I hope this works out for the story though. Now, I've seen that the review box has been sort of quiet since of late. I wish to receive reviews of this one, and if necessary, I will beg! I'm serious! Thank you,**

**Hikaru **


	6. Picking Up on Things

Another Day In the Making

Chapter 6: Picking Up On Things

**Previously, in chapter 5, "Pulling Strings and Legs", Kathy, Dexter and the Professor watched as the Powerpuff Girls chase Princess Morbucks away from the Townsville Bandshell. From here on, we will continue on this portion of the story. I've been wanting to change the way I have been writing, so the writing will be a little different this time. I hope that it won't disturb the flow of reading for you all, if so, you can tell me. I will also be changing my pen name from Hikaru Sankuro to Cecilia Cournette, just so you know.**

**Me: Oh my gosh, I can't believe myself!**

**Kathy: I know, it took you three months to write a five page chapter.**

**Me: Did not! It took me two months, not three.**

**Dexter: What was the other one month then?**

**Me: My laptop got busted.**

**Kathy: Sure, sure it did.**

**Me: Honest!! It did! The mouse stopped moving on the screen and, well, I had to shut it down, and...*goes on about it***

**Dexter: While she does that, you might as well start reading. It'll take awhile for her to stop talking.**

**Kathy: Remember readers, the chapters are going to be different from here on. It's written in third person now instead of first person. Enjoy! **

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Mandark was sitting by a large computer screen, examining the camera's footage over and over again. It was the same footage he had been looking at for days on end, but it never once made sense. It was footage of that night. The night when that girl destroyed his life's work, all in mere minutes. That night was like a nightmare. No, even worse, it was a nightmare. There was barely anything left of his laboratory by the time dawn broke. He had gone straight to work on the new lab and had construction bots building around the clock. The laboratory was about 75 percent done now. The last few things that needed tending to were rebuilding prototypes and ordering equipment. Mandark sighed. How was he going to _pay_ for all this?

"Mandark, there is a transmission from Princess Morbucks."

He groaned. "What now?" He closed the camera footage and answered the transmission. Princess Morbucks's face appeared on the screen, the sound of wind whistling in the microphone."This better be good little girl, I'm busy right now." He snapped.

"Oh really? Doing what? 'Cuz last time I checked Mandy, you didn't have anything to do since your lab was blown to the high heavens." Morbucks snapped back.

He ignored the nickname and got down to business. "Did you find her?"

"I think I might've."

"That's a miracle. Someone like you can actually think."

"Very funny Mandy, very funny." she said, squinting at him.

"Back to the girl. I will ask again. Did you find her?"

"Yes, but..." She trailed off.

"But what?"

The red-head bit her lip. "I got mixed up with the Powerpuff Girls."

Mandark was about to explode. He groaned, saying, "This is what I get for letting an imbecile do a genius's work."

Princess Morbucks snorted. "Oh please, and I'd like to see YOU try and shake off these losers."

He couldn't deny that. Action spoke louder than words, but he was more of a person of words. "Well be sure to capture her this time. And don't fail."

---------------

Katherine was on the verge of going absolutely crazy. After what just happened, you probably would too. The three girls who she had just seen standing in front of her, flew away like birds with rocket boosters. Only thing was, they didn't have any rocket boosters. She usually had a good sense of rationality, so flying girls weren't exactly what she was expecting. It was the kind of thing that would have her mouth go agape in confusion, if she was the kind of person who did that. Sure, she was trained to fight and protect aliens of every kind, but flying girls didn't go in the same category.

"I'll be seeing you gents later." She said to the two scientists, "I'm going to investigate something." With that, she turned around, only bump right into a distracted-looking Toni.

"Hey Kathy. What happened while I was gone? I thought I heard an explosion." He asked.

"Toni? Where were you?" She questioned back, surprised at his sudden appearance.

He scratched his head. "The bathroom."

She paused for a moment, then laughed. "I'm sorry, but I thought I heard you just say that you were in the bathroom."

"Actually, I did just say that I was in the bathroom."

Katherine slapped him over the side of the head and said, "You idiot! You were in the bathroom the whole blasted time?!"

"Ow! What was that for?!"

"While you were in there wasting your time, the concert was starting!" She said, infuriated by his ignorance.

"Katherine..?" said Dexter, but she was a little too busy scolding Toni to notice.

"Just what do you think you were doing going off just before the concert started anyway?"

"Katherine." He repeated.

Toni looked over her shoulder, seeing Dexter trying to get her attention. "Kathy, I didn't know that—"

"Oh don't give me that excuse! You told me yourself that you knew when your band was going up,"

"I wasn't talking about that, now let me finish my sentence!" he butted in.

She crossed her arms. "Fine, go ahead."

"Thank you." He whispered. He looked over Katherine to see Dexter and the Professor. "I didn't know that you were here, Dexter. Is this your first time at the concert?"

"Yeah, how did you know?" Dexter asked him.

"You're the only red-head I've ever seen around at the concert, well, except for that girl that came in backstage." He then suddenly noticed the piles of rubble, which once resembled the Bandshell wall, that laid in the back behind Dexter. "Whoa. What happened there?"

"Dunno, I think one of those girls blasted the wall open with a laser gun that they had." said Katherine, dropping her temper completely.

"It was probably Princess Morbucks's." said the Professor.

"Who is Princess Morbucks? You mean the girl in the yellow?" She queried.

"Yes. The other girls are my daughters."

"What? They're your kids?"

The Professor explained to her and Toni that the girls were born in an experiment he was doing, which incidentally, had Chemical X put into the mix. Thus creating the Powerpuff Girls.

"Wait, so those girls are superheroes?" asked Toni.

"In a way, yes." said the Professor.

"Super-human strength, speed, heat vision, the works?" asked Katherine.

"Yes, and much more," said Dexter. Each of us were staring at him. "take it from someone who knows." he added.

"And what about Princess Morbucks? Is she like them too?" asked Toni.

Dexter cut in here. "No, she is a spoiled, ignorant girl that thinks that she can get whatever she wants, no matter what it is."

"All so true." confirmed the Professor.

Katherine realized that she was losing her chance to follow the Powerpuff Girls by the moment, just standing here. Then a light lit up in her head. "Say, don't you think it's sort of strange to be talking with one another without knowing each other's names?" she pointed out.

Toni took this into consideration. "You're right," he said, turning to the Professor. "my apologies for the rudeness. I'm Santonio Nixon."

"Professor Utonium." said the Professor. They shook hands with each other, and he asked him, "I suppose you are, er, were going to play in the children's concert?"

"Yeah, and I think I know one of your girls. You see, it was a couple of weeks before today, and our vocalist contracted the flu. We needed a back-up, and so Kathy here asked a girl if she could help us stay in the concert. The girl had black hair, green eyes. Isn't that right, Kathy? ...Kathy?" said Toni.

Nobody had noticed she had left in the midst of the conversation until now. She had disappeared.

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Katherine was panting hard. She realized, it was difficult to catch up to superheroes, especially the ones that can fly. She was in the Townsville city park, which wasn't that far from the Bandshell. She could only see a speck of what resembled Princess Morbucks. Only assuming the obvious, Katherine thought that Princess Morbucks had been able to lose the Girls, considering that she didn't see them chasing behind her, their pink, blue and green energy trails not lighting the skies like earlier. Although, there was a devious-looking cloud of smoke in the air, somewhat behind Princess Morbucks.

"I could've sworn they were following right behind her a second ago..." she muttered under her breath. At this time, she was looking down at the ground, letting her heart slow down a few beats. After she just got her breath back, she lifted her head back up, just in time to see a dot of yellow growing bigger,and bigger. And closer.

-----------------------

"Mandark, you have another transmission from Princess Morbucks."

"Oh for the love of..." murmured Mandark. He brought the link up again, expecting yet another childish complaint. "What is it?" he snapped.

Princess Morbucks was taken aback by this, but recovered quickly. "I have to say, that smoke bomb wasn't half bad! When did you say you snuck that in my pack again?"

"Have you made progress or not?" he cut in.

"Fine, fine, pushy much?"

"Yes."

"Anyway, I found her."

Mandark's eyes widened ecstatically. "Computer, bring up camera footage from rocket booster model no. 6892."

"Yes Mandark." replied the Computer. The live footage of Princess Morbucks's face exchanged with another channel of footage which showed a large park from an areal view. On the ground was a running figure. The figure had almost white hair and blue clothing. The figure got larger and larger, eventually looking more and more like Katherine. Her head whipped back, then looking back in front of her, starting to accelerate. He knew it would be no use though. The rocket booster that he had given Princess Morbucks would allow her to travel approximately four to six times that of an average human's running speed. The difference would be about 70 to 100 mph against about 13 to 20 mph. It was quite obvious as to which would win over.

Mandark smiled maliciously at this victory. He could hear the screaming and yelling of a familiar voice piercing through the audio receiver, the sounds of struggle mingling with it.

He laughed maniacally, the satisfaction of the achievement overjoying him. He then said, "Bring her here. I want to meet with her in person." With that, he ended the tranmission, and moved on to prepare for the next stage of his plan:

Confrontation.

To be continued...

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**Ah, finished already? I know, not much to show considering all that time wasted, right? Well don't worry, I have things planned out to as far as an eleventh chapter! I am prepared, give me you're worst!**

**Haha, just kidding. Just send in the usual, constructive critiques and all. Oh, and please be sure to answer my poll for this fanfic which is on my profile. I appreciate your patience with me! Thank you!**

**Hikaru**


	7. Leaving No Stone Unturned

Another Day in the Making

Chapter 7: Leaving No Stone Unturned

---------------

Sneaky. Very, very sneaky.

Toni could believe how things were going. He, as Katherine's childhood friend, found her disappearing act not surprising. In fact, he actually expected this completely, knowing how her mind worked. It was like her to go wandering off somewhere. Especially to the places that have "no trespassing" and "do not enter" plastered across the entrance. Those ones in particular were entertaining to her. She would say that places like that always have "the really secret and dangerously cool stuff" hanging around them.

"Where did she go?" said Dexter.

"Who knows," said Toni, scratching his head. "but I think it's best we worry about coming up with an explanation for breaking the city's property first. They're probably going to be very upset about it."

"No worries," reassured the Professor, who just came back from the police station. "I just called the Mayor about the Bandshell and explained that the girls will be here to fix up the incident as soon as they are done with catching Princess Morbucks. I'll be back later. I need to let the townspeople know that the concert has been canceled." he then walked off, leaving both Toni and Dexter in the Bandshell.

Dexter started towards the exit, but Toni stopped him, grabbing his shoulder. "And where are you going?" asked Toni.

"I'm going to find Katherine." said Dexter. He brushes Toni off and starts for the exit again, but Toni stops him by standing in front of the exit.

"She'll be fine. She can take care of herself." insisted Toni.

"How do you know?"

"Experience. She's probably trying to find answers again, she always does that."

Dexter looked at him curiously. "What do you mean?"

"When Kathy has questions, she becomes completely focused on getting answers. She searches to the ends of the Earth, sometimes even literally..." said Toni. Dexter was moving past him through the exit, but Toni put a hand on his arm and held him there with a small grin. "and did I mention she prefers to do those kind of things on her own? Because she hates intrusions."

"Well I'm sure that she won't mind this one time then." said Dexter, trying to break away again, but failing.

"No, no, no, no, you're not listening to me. She won't like it if you get into her business."

Dexter glared into his eyes for a minute or two. "Then I assume you have better ideas?"

"Actually, yes, I do." he said glaring back, reaching into his pocket. He pulled out his cellphone and started to dial a contact number. "We call her. You see, it's the same purpose, but with less direct pain from female nagging."

Toni let the cellphone ring for a moment before he put it beside his ear. But before he could, the phone hung up. Toni stared at the phone with a unusual look on his face. It wasn't like Kathy to not answer her phone. He redialed the number and let it ring again. It hung up almost immediately this time. He was slightly taken aback by this.

"What is it?" Dexter asked.

"I don't know, she isn't answering her phone." said Toni, shutting his phone. "There's something wrong, and I don't like it."

He let go of Dexter, who stood there in place. He went to the back corner of the stage and grabbed something out of a trunk and then snatched Dexter's wrist. He leads him out of the backstage of the Bandshell towards the back of it.

"What is _that_?" said Dexter in astonishment. In Toni's hands was a skateboard which had rockets welded to the sides of it. The skateboard had been spraypainted immaturely with green paint and the small wheels had been replaced with ones twice their size, but they all weren't the same kind. One of them was a wooden wheel from a toy car and another looked to be from a tricycle.

"What?" said Toni, tracing Dexter's awkward stare towards the Rocketboard. "Oh come on! You have to admit I did pretty good."

"For an amateur, yes, but a professional, no." objected Dexter. He took the board into his hands and examined it. "The board is too small in comparison to the rockets and if you were to land, the wheels wouldn't be able to stand the velocity of the board. They would have to be sturdier than, well, a tricycle wheel. In conclusion, this would probably fall apart the moment you try to land. I believe a good term would be 'perfectly flawed.'"

"Using oxymorons as criticism huh?" said Toni, who was glaring at him with squinted eyes. "Well, allow me to demonstrate." He took the Rocketboard back and set it on the ground. He stepped up onto it and found a cord. He pulled it back, and then stamped his foot on a pedal which was on the front of the board. The Rocketboard started to hum, its rockets sparking blue flames. In moments it blasted from the ground and into the air as Toni struggled to stay balanced. He steered it around in the air, letting it fly only several feet above the ground.

Dexter looked up at him half in disbelief and half in awe. Toni laughed triumphantly and said, "What do you think? It's just like they say Dexter, 'don't judge a book by its cover.'" He lowered down next to him and held out his hand. "Now c'mon, we have a missing friend to find."

* * *

"What was that?"

"Nothing. Just your imagination."

"No, I'm pretty sure I heard a phone ring."

"Yeah, and I'm pretty sure you're insane and hallucinating it."

Princess Morbucks glared at her suspectingly. "Y'know, I could just 'accidently' drop you and you can become a cracked egg on the ground."

"Hmm, let me think about that," said Katherine, then laughing sarcastically, "yeah, right! As if I'd let you."

"That's what I thought." said Princess Morbucks, perturb at how comical Katherine was being with her. She quit glaring at her and began to curse the sky.

Katherine quickly hid her phone in her fist. That was close, too close. If the red-headed girl had seen the phone, it would narrow her chances of getting out of this safely. To be honest though, she had no idea what was going on. If she knew, it would answer the questions that were residing in her mind, and more importantly, why this was happening in the first place. She glanced down at the ground, which was far from what her feet could reach. When she squinted her eyes, she could see the people who were walking down below her and Princess Morbucks.

"Question," said Katherine. "where exactly are you taking me?"

"Somewhere familiar." mumbled Princess Morbucks.

"I would prefer for you to be more specific than that."

"Its a surprise."

"Well then why didn't you say that in the first place?"

The girl was very frustrated now. "Why don't you just shut up?"

Katherine smirked and stuck her togue out. "Make me."

"Why you little--!" growled Princess Morbucks, but she was stopped by a very familiar voice.

"Don't even think about it Morbucks. If you do anything to her before getting her here, the deal is off."

A small flat screen monitor had popped up while the two them were arguing. On the screen was a raven-haired boy wearing half moon glasses. It was Mandark. Katherine gasped. "You!"

"Mandy!" exclaimed Princess Morbucks.

"Stop calling me that!" yelled Mandark.

Could it be that Mandark and Princess Morbucks were working together? If they were, why were they and to what extent? This was getting to be a more confusing yet dangerous situation with each giving moment.

"What is taking you so long? I told you to get here _ten minutes ago!_" he yelled again.

"Well maybe if this pest would stay quiet for at least a moment, I would have gotten there by now." complained Princess Morbucks.

"Oh don't even talk to me about pests!" snapped Mandark. "If it wasn't for our deal, I would've swatted you out of the sky like a fly you incompetent girl!"

"If I'm so incompliant, then why don't you come and swing at me right now?" she growled back at him.

"Incompliant?" said Mandark. "I said incompetent, you fool!"

Katherine looked at the two of them arguing. If she didn't know any better, she would have said that they were having a lover's spat. But she ignored them and examined the problem at hand. Okay, so she was kidnapped by a supposed acquaintance of Mandark, and from what she just overheard, they had made a deal. But what was it that they agreed on? Did it have anything to do with her? Well, she assumed so, since she barely knows this red-headed girl and vice versa, and if that was true, then when looked from another perspective, it seemed that Princess Morbucks was picking her up for, as she was guessing, Mandark. But why? She scratched her head. "Jeez, so many questions." She glanced at the two of them again. Much to her amazement, they were still bickering. She then noticed a familiar laser gun tucked away in its holster on Princess Morbucks' utility belt. She smiled. This was a great opportunity for her to snatch it. She took cautious glance towards her two kidnappers, and it seemed that they were still too busy arguing. She then carefully reached out to the laser gun, fingers outstretched. She shifted forward a little to extend her reach, the tips of her fingers only tapping the handle of the gun. She moved her body forward an inch or two more and was able to grip the laser gun with her index finger and thumb. Pulling it into her hand, she glanced one last time at Princess Morbucks and Mandark, she grasped the gun and stuffed it into her coat jacket.

That's when her phone started to ring again.

* * *

Dexter was holding on for dear life. He knew that the Rocketboard that Toni had made did not look stable, but it was. He said that it wouldn't be able to hold two people, let alone one, but it defied that as well. The minute they would land he knew that it would fall to pieces. But after the many reassurances from Toni that tackled his concerns, he gave up on the whole subject completely. Toni was currently trying to call Katherine again. Now he was smiling.

"It picked up!" yelled Toni.

The wind was making it hard for Dexter to hear him. "What?"

"I said it picked up!"

"That's great! Can we get down now?" Dexter yelled back.

"Not yet! I need verification that she's really there!"

"Why? That is her phone you're calling, isn't it?"

Toni didn't answer. He put a finger up to silence him and set the phone to speakerphone and gave it to him. "I need to steer this thing! You hold it!"

Flustered, Dexter stared at the phone.

Toni whipped his head around to stare at him. "What is it? You look like you've never seen a cellphone before!"

'I have! It's just that...yours is completely different from what I'm used to seeing!" And what he said was true. The phone hardly even resembled a phone, what with all the small buttons and even smaller levers on the side of it. The screen looked as if it had been modified and adapted from a GPS console and the antennae was twisted this way and that as if it was trying to find its signal like a dog finding a scent. It seemed to be made out of a wire hanger. "Do you make _everything_ you have yourself?!"

"From shoes to filing cabinets, yes! I do indeed!" he said pridefully. He went back to steering the Rocketboard as Dexter listened to the "phone."

There was much background noise coming from the other line sounded like Static. But Dexter could hear the faint voices yelling within the noise. Then Toni said, "Try turning the green knob on your left! It will pick out the voices!"

Dexter did so, and as he said, the voices became clearer and easier to listen to. It sounded as if there were two, no, three people on the receiver. He could then hear Katherine's voice, as well as Princess Morbucks'. Katherine was yelling, and Princess Morbucks was yelling back.

"G-give it back! Give back right now!" Katherine yelled.

"You really think I would? How stupid do you think I am?" retorted Princess Morbucks.

Then the most unexpected voice emerged within the conversation. Someone that Dexter never thought he would have to hear in this situation.

"Considering that you drag someone with my kind of genius so low as to help someone of your intelligence, not that far from pathetic. You don't know the meaning of originality or independency, do you?" said Mandark.

"You're one to talk!" Dexter barked into the phone. "You lack in both of those abilities!"

"Dexter!" cried Katherine.

"Katherine, are you okay? Where are you?"

"Well would you look at that, it seems as if Dexter is calling to check on his little _girlfriend_." remarked Mandark.

Dexter's face flushed red. "She is NOT my girlfriend!!"

"Sure, sure. And I'm the Boogeyman." said Mandark.

"What are you doing with her? Answer me Mandark!"

"Come now Dorkster, I'm just having a little fun."

"Mandark, this is serious. Let her go. Is you don't I'll--"

"Dexter!" said Katherine. "Listen carefully to me. Yax is 7882 while Xis 906. Tell Toni that, he'll know what to do!"

"Morbucks, get rid of the phone!" ordered Mandark.

"Yes," said Princess Morbucks, whispering, "Tootle lo, Ginger."

After that, all Dexter could hear was the whistling of air zipping past the phone, and then, a minute later, Static was all that was heard. Dexter bit his lip in anger, temptation of smashing the phone came to mind, but he resisted. He asked, "Toni, you heard what she said, didn't you? What was that, a code?"

"No, they're coordinates. 'Yax is 7882' is 'Y axis 7882' and 'Xis 906' is 'X axis 906.' We put it into code for emergencies only. The coordinates only correspond to certain places though. 7000s are for midway towns and 900s are west towns, so she must be somewhere in Genius Grove." said Toni.

"Mandark's house."

"What?"

"The place they're going to take her is at Mandark's house. His laboratory to be precise."

"Who is this Mandark person? A friend?"

"No. Far from it."

To be continued...

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**Oh, why hello there! Nice to see you here. Since you're finished, that means you've read the chapter, right? Oh well, even if you haven't, please visit my profile to answer a poll of mine, will you? Many thanks,**

**Cecilia**


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